Cornet



W. A. FRENCH.

CORNET.

APPLICATION man JUNE H.1914.

l ,1 96,097. Patented Aug. 29, 1916.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WALTER A. FRENCH, 0F KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI.

CORNET.

Application filed June 8, 1914.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WALTER A. FRENCH, a citizen of the United States, residing at Kansas City, in the county of Jackson and State of Missouri, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Cornets, of which the 'following is a specification.

This invention relates to cornets or instruments of that class in which the notes are determined by valves or pistons which establish communication with auxiliary sections of tubing to eifect variations in the length of the vibrating air column, and has for its object to improve the tone and tune in making a quick change to A from B flat, by providing tor eXtra length in the vibrating air column, without forming shoulders or obstructions in the tubing which-as in telescoping slide tubes-impair the tone by loweringT the pitch thereof.

A further object is to provide a construction whereby the length of the tubing may be increased, a long model instrument producing a better tone and being easier to blow.

To these ends, the invention consists in certain novel and peculiar features of construction and organization as hereinafter described and claimed; and in order that it may be fully understood, reference is to be had to the accompanying drawing, in which Figure 1, is a side elevation of a cornet embodying the invention. Fig. 2, is an enlarged horizontal section on the line II-II of Fig. 1. Fig. 3, is a vertical section on the line III-III of Fig. 1.

In the said drawing 1 is a cornet of well known construction, but lacking the usual telescoping slide tube by which the player makes the quick change to A or from A to B flat. In the tubing, at a point between the mouth-piece 2 and the keys 3, there is provided a vertical cylindrical'valve casing 11 closed at its ends by caps 5. At each end the casing is provided with a sleeve 6, one communicating with the tube 7 extending from the mouth-piece, and the other with a short tube 8 leading into one of the valves 3. In the same horizontal plane with each sleeve 6 are sleeves 9 and 10, the sleeves 9 being connected by a U-shaped tube 11 through which the air travels when the instrument is played in the key of B Hat. A longer U-shaped tube 12 is connected at its opposite ends to the sleeves 10, and through Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 29, 1916.

serial No. 843,601.

said tube 12 the air travels when the instrument is played in the key of A. For directing the air through one ot' said tubes 11 or 12 as desired, a cylindrical piston 13 is rotatably arranged within the casing 4, and is provided with a handle 14- projecting outward through a slot 15 in casing 4, and said piston is provided at each end in the horizontal planes of the adjacent sleeves 6, 9 and 10, with a cross tube or passage 16 of such form and arrangement that when the handle 1-l is at one end of the slot 15, the tubes or passages 16 of the piston connect the opposite ends of tube 11 with tubes 7 and. S respectively.

To effect the quick change to A, pressure is applied on handle 14C to rotate piston 13 until the handle is arrested by engagement with the opposite end of slot 15, the length ot' the latter being such that it makes provision for just sufiicient turning movement of the piston to cause the passages 16 to register properly with tubes 7 and 11 or 7 and 12, the position of the piston when establishing communication between the lastnamed tubes being indicated by dotted lines, Fig. 2. When the instrument is being played and it is desired to make the quick change to A, the player operates the handle 14, as above stated, and thus cuts oif the passage of air through the tube 11, and directs it through the tube 12 and thereby increases the length of the vibrating air column in the same manner as would be obtained with a single tube, composed of telescopic sections, but with the added advantage of avoiding a production ot' shoulders or wind breaks to impair the quality of the tone or affect the pitch thereof as, of course, is incident to the use of the sliding telescoping tube common in cornets. By providing the relatively long vertical piston, it is practicable to utilize tubes 11 and 12 of considerable length without sharp bends` and this is desirable as an increase in the length of the tubes and the avoidance of bends makes the cornet easier to blow and gives it a better tone for each pitch.

From the above description it will be apparent that I have produced a cornet embodying the features of advantage enumerated as desirable and which is susceptible of modification in minor particulars without departing from the spirit and scope or sacrifcing any of the advantages of the appended claim.

I claim:-

A cornet provided with a vertical valve casing having a sleeve 6 at its upper end connected to the mouth-piece tube, and a similar sleeve at its lower end connected to one of the ordinary valve casings; said first Casing also having a pair oit' sleeves 9 and l0 at its upper end and a pair of sleeves 9 and l0 at its lower end; a U-shaped tube Connecting the sleeves 9, and a longer U-sliaped tube connecting the sleeves 10; a vertical cylindrical piston fitting snugly and rotatably in the casing and provided at its ends with horizontal similarly curved cross passages 16, one being adapted to connect sleeve 6 alternately with either of the upper' sleeves 9 and l0 and the other to connect simultaneously sleeve 8 with either of the lower sleeves 9 and l0, and means to turn the piston in opposite directions to make the connections mentioned between said sleeves.

In testimony whereof, I affix my signature, in the presence of two witnesses.

VALTER A. FRENCH.

Witnesses:

H. C. RODGERS, G. Y. THORPE.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C. 

